Yesterday, a conference was held in Butmir where EUFOR and the Armed Forces of Bosnia and Herzegovina (AFBiH) announced the military exercise “Quick Response,” set to take place from August 24th to September 16th.
Major General Laszlo Sticz spoke at the conference, providing details about the exercise, planned activities, and reassuring citizens of BiH that there is no need for concern.
He emphasized that while EUFOR, due to the nature of military operations, cannot always inform the public about every activity. However, they make sure to notify citizens in advance when a significant event like “Quick Response” is planned.
“‘Quick Response’ is one of the most important exercises for all our forces and has been a key training event held regularly since 2012. This year’s ‘Quick Response’ will be conducted with the support of AFBiH, which has provided their facilities for the exercise. It will involve forces from 23 member countries, as well as temporary reinforcements from Austria, Hungary, Romania, and the Kosovo Force (KFOR) peacekeeping mission in Kosovo,” Sticz announced.
The exercise will begin on August 24th and conclude on September 16th. During this period, reserve forces will begin their deployment across BiH.
“Some activities related to the exercise will be conducted within the Butmir base, and will also include some other exercises. Some activities will be distributed outside the Butmir base. Due to this, citizens will notice an increased presence of soldiers across various locations in BiH, such as border crossings like Bosanski Brod and Svilaj, and areas including Capljina, Glamoc, Livno, Orasje, Sarajevo, Tuzla, and Ustikolina,” the major general added.
Sticz also highlighted that EUFOR is taking all necessary measures to minimize the impact of the exercise on the local population. He assured that citizens will be informed in a timely manner about all related activities.
Following Sticz, Lieutenant General Gojko Knezevic, Chief of the Joint Staff of AFBiH, also addressed the attendees.
“The security situation in BiH remains stable, and we hope it will continue to be so in the coming period. In May, the ‘Combined Response’ exercise was carried out, and all AFBiH resources will be available to EUFOR during this exercise. Citizens can remain completely at ease,” Knezevic concluded, Klix.ba writes.
E.Dz.
